Juanita Bay Pier Appeal

Kirkland Neighbors!

Do you want a private marina in Juanita Bay? Help us stop this unsightly pier.

If you love visiting Juanita Beach Park or Juanita Bay Park with friends and family, watching the various waterfowl from our public dock, and pausing to take in the charming views around the Bay, we need your help! 

We're a small group of local park enthusiasts trying to preserve the serenity of Juanita Bay. The City of Kirkland recently approved the developer permit  for the Bel Lago pier, a private dock to be built for a large condo complex almost adjacent to the beach.  

Many of you may have voiced opposition to this pier previously . However, after initially denying the permit due to its interference with recreational and navigational uses of the lake, the City reversed itself and issued the permit after a mediation with the developer that the community was not able to participate in.  

Although the pier is slightly shorter and has fewer slips than the original configuration, it is still 226 feet long. This new dock will be significantly longer than others already dotted along the shoreline and is out of keeping with the character of Juanita Bay.

In addition to interfering with recreational and navigational uses, such as kiteboarding, it also presents a risk to the balance of the local ecosystem that our city is obligated to protect. Legal representation for this appeal will be secured through this Go Fund Me effort.


What does this mean for Juanita Bay? 

The proposed dock will add 16 boats to an already crowded recreational area, 12 of which may be motor boats. 

We believe the dock will interfere with, and pose new risks to, kite-boarders, kayakers, paddle boarders and swimmers with a surge in motorized traffic within such close proximity of each other, and the need to navigate around a new obstacle that will stick out into the Bay. 

We are concerned that the dock will degrade water quality and pose a threat to water fowl and fish. Sufficient studies have not been done by the applicant or the City to assure that this dock won’t adversely affect the environment, and we believe at minimum, a full environmental Impact Statement should be required. Especially with the Juanita Bay Park protected wetlands right across from this development. 

We’re appealing the City’s decision to permit the Bel Lago dock  before the Shoreline Hearings Board, but we need your help. Time is short. We have to engage a land use attorney, locate experts, and prepare our preliminary arguments within the next several weeks.


How can you help?

We need your support! We cannot mount an effective appeal without it.
Please donate what you can, we cannot risk losing our beautiful shores to unsightly development.

Thank you!